Chew on This!

As you scan the things you use or consume every day to inventory the plastic in your life, you’ll probably overlook that pack of chewing gum on your desk or in your car. Yes, chewing gum has been made with plastic for decades! The main ingredient, gum base, was originally from tree sap or resin, mostly chicle from the sapodilla tree native to tropical rainforests in Mexico and Central America. Eventually, however, this plant-based product was replaced in the market by gum made with manmade polymers, a.k.a. plastic. Anyone who has stepped on old chewing gum know it’s not biodegradable! Today, choosy consumers are starting to demand a return to gum made with chicle and other natural ingredients…do a search online or at your healthy food store.